Glove to aid in gripping the club handle



Jufly 14, 1970 E. P. HAWS 3,520,539

GOLF GLOVE TO AID GRIPPING THE CLUB HANDLE Filed Sept. 14, 1967 FIGZ INVENTOR EUGENE P HAWS M, 4,, WW

ATTORNEYS United States Patent O 3,520,539 GLOVE TO AID IN GRIPPING THE CLUB HANDLE Eugene P. Haws, 52466 Shelby Road, Utica, Mich. 48087 Filed Sept. 14, 1967, Ser. No. 667,806 Int. Cl. A63b 69/36 US. Cl. 273166 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A flat closed band formed of leather is adapted to surround and be supported on the left-hand of a right-hand golfer, or vica versa, so as to encompass the extended palm and back of the hand below the fingers. The band contains an elongated section attached to one edge in the palm area and extending thereform, generally normally to the band, toward the wrist. The extending section has a length greater than the developed perimeter of the grip of a golf club to be supported. The. free end of the extending section is brought into contact with a point of the club grip and the club is rotated so as to roll the extending section about it. The section fully encompasses the club and locks the position of the club with respect to the golfers palm.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention This invention relates to glove-like devices to be attached to a hand having extending sections adapted to grip the handles of golf clubs and the like in order to rigidly retain and align them with respect to the hand.

It has previously been recognized that a device which would accurately position and securely retain the handle of a golf club in a right-handed golfers left hand or visa versa would cure a number of the faults which mark many golfers swings, including over-swinging at both the end of the backsrtoke and the forward stroke and shifting of the club at impact with the ball. Devices provided for this purpose have often taken the form of sections of gloves having straps formed thereon which are adapted to surround and engage a section of the grip portion of the club.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION The present invention contemplates such a device which is simple in construction, is easily placed on the hand and engaged with the club and which does not interefere with an otherwise substantially normal grip of the club. Additionally, the present device assures accurate alignment of the club and locks it to the hand even when a very light gripping pressure is exerted thereon. Because of its configuration it also acts as a pad to protect the palm against agitation by the club.

Broadly, a preferred embodiment of the present invention consists of a closed strip of leather adapted to surround that hand of a golfer which is disposed at the top of the club shaft. This is generally the left hand for a righthanded golfer and visa versa. The device is also adapted for use for gripping of other objects, such as tennis racket handles, or tools, and while the following description is limited to golf clubs, such other uses should be borne in mind. The strip is contoured so that one side passes transversely across the palm while the other side is disposed across the back of the hand just below the base of the four fingers. The palm engaging section is contoured so as to cross the palm midway between the base of the hand and the bottom of the four fingers.

A flat extending section having a length sufiicient to wrap fully around a golf club, and a width slightly less than the width of the wrist, is attached to one side of the 3,520,539 Patented July 14, 1970 palm engaging section so as to project rearwardly toward the wrist. To engage the glove to a club the golfer simply brings the outerside of the free end of the extending section into contact with the club grip, and rotates the club so as to roll the extending section about the club head. The extending section has a sufficient length to fully surround the club grip. The club is rotated until one edge of its perimeter is in contact with the palm engaging section. At this point, the club is properly oriented with respect to the golfers palm and must move with the palm because of the engagement between the surface of the extending section which is in abutment with the grip and the club. The only freedom of motion that the club grip has with respect to the hand is to rotate so as to unroll the extending section of the glove, and this motion is easily restrained by even light finger pressure. If the club does not have a proper rotational position within the hand, the point of initial application of the extending section to the grip was improper, and should be modified.

In use, the glove is extremely easy to apply to the hand, is not in any way restricting on the normal grip, and provides a sure and accurate grip and lignment of the club. The device is low in cost and may easily be stored in the golfers pocket when not in use.

Other objects, advantages and applications of the present invention will be made apparent by the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the inventionfiThe description makes reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a glove constituting a preferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a view of the glove slipped on a golfers hand taken from the palm side;

FIG. 3 is a view of glove slipped on a golfers hand taken from the back side;

FIG. 4 shows the position of a club at the point of initial application of the glove, with the hand held open; and FIG. 5 shows the glove wrapped around a club with the hand open.

Referring to the drawing, the preferred embodiment of the invention is formed of leather, although flexible sheets of fabrics or plastics, properly treated, might be employed in other embodiments.

One elongated strip of leather, which is not perfectly straight, but which is contoured as will be subsequently described, having an average Width of approximately two inches and a length of approximately eight inches, is joined into a closed main loop 1 0 by a sewn seam 12 which extends across its width. The closed loop 10 has a front circumferential edge 10a and a rear circumferential edge 10b and flares outwardly from the front circumferential edge 10a toward the rear circumferential edge 1011. Consequently, when the hand of the wearer is inserted into the glove from the rear circumferential edge 10b toward to front circumferential edge 10a, the rear circumferential edge 10b is disposed adjacent the heel of the hand.

Alternately, the seam 12, and other seams on the device, vice, may be appropriately bonded rather than sewn.

A second sewn seam 14 joins an elongated extending section 16 to one edge of the loop 10. The section 16 may typically have an average width of about two inches with its extreme end 18 being flared outwardly to a slightly greater width, and may have a length of approximately three inches. It should be recognized that all of these dimensions are relative, and the gloves might be formed in two or more sizes in the manner of ordinary gloves. In use, the four fingers are slipped through the loop 10 so that the extending section 16 lies on the palm side and projects toward the wrists. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 the strip of leather from which the loop 10 is formed is contoured so that the loop fits across the back of the hand with one edge projecting across the base of the fingers, and the other edge parallel thereto.

The section forms a slight arc across the palm with the edges of the arc lying adjacent to the outer sides of the bases of the first and fourth fingers, with the are curving across the center of the palm. In this position the seam 12 will preferably extend across the center of the section at the back of the hand and the extending section 16 will project across the heel of the hand to the middle of the Wrist.

Some golfers prefer to use the device of the present invention with the loop 10 extending over the fingers rather than the hand itself. They feel that this mode of use provides the strongest grip on the club.

While this glove may be employed to firmly grip a variety of articles having handles, the use of the preferred embodiment will be described in connection with a golf club. To engage the glove with a club handle, the handle is positioned so as to extend over the free end of the extending section 16, with an angular orientation and an orientation with respect to the hand which is best derived from a first experimental use. The end of the extending section is held against the club grip and the club is rotated so as to wind the extending section about the grip. The extending section is long enough to fully Wrap about the grip so that when the club is fully wound, the outer side of the extending section fully engages itself.

The glove itself limits the amount that the club may be rotated, and governs its final position, as shown in FIG. 5, wherein it is parallel to the palm section of the glove. In this position, the club is not free to rotate with respect to the hand or change its angle of inclination with respect to the palm. It may be very firmly retained with only a slight pressure by the fingers against the extending section. Of course, in use, the golfer applies a normal, fully pressured grip, which very securely retains the club with rsepect to the hand.

The glove acts to maintain the club in this particular orientation so that there is no tendency for the club to swing away from the hand at the end of the back swing or the forward swing, or upon impact with the ball. Use of the glove has been found to impart confidence to golfers, because of the feeling that the club is actually part of the hand so simplifies the complexities of the stroke.

The proper rotational adjustment of the club with respect to the glove, when the Wrap is initiated, may be easily determined by experimentation. When the glove is in use it in no way restricts the application of the normal grip to the club, since it leaves the fingers and thumb completely free. It is therefore also useful as a training device.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A handle gripping glove for restraining a handle relative to the hand of the wearer comprising: a hand receiving section including a closed loop of flexible material for receiving the hand of the wearer and having a palm engaging portion for overlying the palm of the hand of the wearer; said palm engaging portion having an inner peripheral edge disposed opposite the fingers and adjacent the heel of the hand when the hand receiving section is properly positioned on the wearers hand; and an elongated fiexible planar handle gripping section having a width substantially one-fourth the circumference of the loop attached at one end to said edge of the palm engaging portion and extending therefrom along the wearers wrist when the hand receiving section is properly disposed on the hand of the wearer and terminating in a free end spaced from said inner peripheral edge a distance greater than the developed perimeter of a handle to be grasped by the wearer, and windable about such handle by rolling the handle toward the fingers of the hand of the wearer when the hand receiving section is properly disposed on the wearers hand such that the free end lies between the surface of the handle and an adjacent layer of the material of the glove, and said free end is unconnected with the hand receiving section permitting the handle to be unrolled toward the wrist when the wearers grasp on the handle is released.

2. The glove of claim 1 wherein the free end of the elongated flexible planar extending section has a Width which is greater than the attached end of said extending section.

3. A handle gripping glove for restraining a handle relative to the hand of the wearer comprising: a hand receiving section including a closed loop of flexible material for receiving the hand of the wearer and having a palm engaging portion for overlying the palm of the hand of the wearer; said closed loop having a front circumferential edge and a rear circumferential edge and flaring outwardly from the front circumferential edge to the rear circumferential edge so that when the hand of the wearer is inserted into the glove from the rear circumferential edge toward the front circumferential edge, the rear circumferential edge is disposed adjacent the heel of the hand, and an elongated flexible planar handle gripping section attached at one end to said rear circumferential edge adjacent the palm engaging portion and extending from said rear circumferential edge along the wearers wrist when the hand receiving section is properly disposed on the hand of the wearer and terminating in a free end spaced from said rear circumferential edge a distance greater than the developed perimeter of a handle to be grasped by the wearer, and windable about such handle by rolling the handle towards the fingers of the hand of the wearer when the hand receiving section is properly disposed on the wearers hand such that the free end lies between the surface of the handle and an adjacent layer of material of the glove, and said free end is unconnected with the hand receiving section permitting the handle to be unrolled toward the wrist when the wearers grasp on the handle is released.

4. A method of using a glove for gripping a handle, said glove having an elongated flexible planar section attached thereto at one end and free of the glove at its other end and having a length greater than the developed perimeter of said handle, comprising: positioning the glove on the hand; placing the handle on the free end of the elongated section; rotating the handle so as to roll the elongated section about the perimeter of the handle; and enclosing the hand about the rolled elongated section and handle.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,465,223 8/1923 Kobbe 273-166 1,681,389 8/1928 Blake 273-166 2,496,808 2/1950 Moore 273166 3,100,302 8/1963 Billings 2-160 3,105,972 10/1963 Christopher 2--16 X ANTON O. OECHSLE, Primary Examiner R. T. APLEY, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 216; 273 

